Search For Mental Patient Leads To Lockdown

TUPELO (WCBI) – The search for a person on a mental committal case leads to a lockdown and police presence near a Tupelo school.

Sheriff Jim Johnson says his officers were trying to serve the order at a home near Joyner School but the individual was not there.  Officers were then told he had been seen in a nearby cemetery carrying a weapon and dressed in camouflage clothing.  That’s when officers began their search wearing protective vests and carrying weapons.  The person was never spotted on or near the school. He is currently still at large and area residents are asked to call 9-1-1 if they see someone with a weapon dressed in camo near the area.  Johnson says privacy laws concerning committal papers prevent the release of the name or a photo  of the person.